Blood and Dreams
Prologue Leaf quitely made her way to the elders' den, on the other side of camp. She hid in the shadows of the setting sun, with her three other companions. Storm, Sky, and Angel all crouched low, follong the older kit to the elders' den. The softclaws were all sharing tounges and boasting about their adventures with their mentors. The sharpclaws were speaking about important stuff, things even Leaf didn't understand, and she was almost eight moons old. The milj-givers were dozing, which gave the kits enough time to sneak out of the den. At this time, as the sun was setting, everyone in the Tribe fretted about the kits being outside. Owls and other birds of prey were posing a great threat to the cats of the Tribe of Endless Skies. The leader, Shriveled Bracken, made a new rule: keeping all cats younger than eight moons old inside when the sun begins to set. But Leaf and the others were bored. It was Angel, actually, who gave the idea to go to the elders' den. Sun Dancer, the only elder in the Tribe, was an excellent story-teller, and was very popular among the five Tribes. After all, she was the one who saved them all. "Quickly! I hear Broken Twig coming!" alerted Sky, the youngest kit in the nusery. She was a small, beautiful, gray tabby she-cat, with bright, curious eyes that always seemed to warm the coldest of hearts. Her father, Hoping Bird, had recently died. An owl was hunting a patrol of sharpclaws and a softclaw when Hoping Bird appeared. He fought the bird off, but both died. The Tribe began to spoil her, but she never became a snotty brat like Leaf thought she would become. No, Sky was still her cheerful, bubbly self. "Shh. Keep low," says Leaf and crouches really low to the ground. Leaf, having light brown fur, didn't really blend in with the mountain landscape. The rocks were gray or black, but light brown, never. Broken Twig appeared, passing the kits by, not noticing them, and joined Shriveled Bracken. "Whew," breathed Storm. The strong, dark gray tom was Angel's brother. He was very handsome, and just two moons younger than Leaf. -- They kept low, incase another cat appeared unexpectedly. Then, after a long time of crossing the large, rocky camp, the kits made it to the elders' den. The den was a small cave, with dips in the ground, filled with downy feathers, moss, dry grass, and other soft, comfortable stuff. Leaf entered cautiously, making sure there were no other cats in the den. No. Leaf motioned for her companions to follow her in. They bolted in, and then, a shrill of excited cries broke. Those stupid kits! They were so loud, I wonder if even the Tribe of Darkening Clouds heard that! Leaf rolled her eyes as she walked in, calmly. Inside, Sun Dancer, a still beautiful golden she-cat with bright green eyes, was surrounded by kits. Angel was jumping up and down. Storm was poking Sun Dancer's stomach. And Sky had her front paws on Sun Dancer's muzzle, and was staring into the elder's eyes. "Tell us a story! Tell us a story!" shrieked Angel. "Yeah, or else I won't stop poking you." Storm agreed. "Pleaseeee?" Sky pleaded and looked deeper into Sun Dancer's eyes. The elder looked away from Sky and stared at Leaf. "Now," Sun Dancer began, "aren't you four breaking the new rule Shriveled Bracken has set?" Sun Dancer stood up, gently shaking off the kits. It was Leaf that replied. "Well, we were really bored. So, um, we decided to," she gulped. "Come to you." Sun Dancer gave a weak laugh, which made her cough. "Well, the least thing I would want for you four is for you to get in trouble." The elder croaked. She looked outside of the cave, the sky darkening. "It won't hurt, after all. I can just say I brought you here. No one, after all, would argue with their most respected elder." Sun Dancer winked a green eye at Leaf. "Now, come here, all four of you, in a circle." The kits gathered around the only elder, their pelts bristling with excitment. Even Leaf was excited about this. "Well, what-" she was broke off by Angel. "Tell us about the time when you saved the Tribes!" Angel mewed. "All right. Well, it all started..." Chapter 1 The golden kit blinked open her eyes for the first time. The light that penetrated the den was blinding for her. She quickly closed her eyes back shut. Ouch! The kit took in a deep breath and opened one eye this time. The light was bright and it bothered her, but instead of closing her eye, she opened the other one. Much better, she thought. The kit yawned and looked around the den for the very first time and gasped. There was another kit, a gray and white one, sleeping soundly right next to her! And there was another kit--cat-- next to the two kits. She was beautiful. Her fur was dark gray, and her tail was stripped with darker rings. Her muzzle, chest, and underbelly were a tad light than her fur, and she was slender. She was sleeping, just like her sister. I wonder if my fur is like that? The kit looked over her shoulder at her back. It was a beautiful golden, but nothing like her mother's. Nope. When the kit looked back at her mother, the beautiful she-cat was awake. "Well, I see you've finally decided to open your eyes, Dancer. Your sister, Cloud, and I have been waiting." The milk-giver nodded towards the sleeping kit. Cloud, I presume? "Well, darling, aren't you going to speak?" The kit's mother asked and sniffed her. She had a beautiful, smooth voice that flowed gently, just like a river. It was a delight to hear it. "You're not muted, are you?" Oh, The kit never really thought about talking. She opened her mouth, but quickly closed it. What if her voice was ugly? But, what if her voice was beautiful, like her mother's? "I," Dancer began, "don't know what to say." Her voice was clear and smooth, like her mother's, only more high-pitched. "Well, Dancer, you said something. Now, we better wake you sister, she'll be delighted to hear that you've opened your eyes." The beautiful milk-giver poked Cloud gently on the side. The gray and white kit shifted in her spot. Dancer's mother poked her again. "Stop it!" hissed Cloud and lifted her head. "What do you want, Light Frost?" Light' Frost? That must be Mother's name, Dancer thought. But why does she have two names when Cloud and I have only one?'' Cloud looked over at Dancer and gasped. "You've opened you eyes! Your eyes!" Cloud blinked the sleep from her eyes and bounded towards her sister. "Wow," she gasped and looked closer at Dancer's eyes. Are they ugly? "Your eyes, they're... beautiful!" Cloud exclaimed. "W-what color are they?" Dancer asked, feeling unsteady as she spoke. She wasn't used to it. "They're the color of grass in Spring!" Cloud mewed. "What is grass? And Spring?" Dancer cocked her head. Cloud's blue eyes dimmed. What did I do? Dancer cocked her head the other side. Cloud looked up at Light Frost. "You didn't tell her anything? She's so dum." Cloud huffed and went back to where she was sleeping. "Call me when she's smarter." "Now, Cloud, you're the one being stupid." Dark Frost defended Dancer. "Remember when you'' first opened your eyes and spoke? You didn't know a single thing. You were dum as well."'' Cloud lifted her head and rolled her eyes. "Fine. Come on, Dancer, let me show you around camp." Cloud mewed and bounded to the entrance of the den. It was then that Dancer noticed they were in a cave, and the entrance was covered in bushes and ivy tendrils. Dancer followed her sister to the entrance, and Cloud disappeared behind the bushes. Dancer hesitated, but followed quickly through. Dancer met Cloud on the other side, and stared around in awe. The camp, the landscape, it was all so beautiful! It was rocky in the camp, and the camp was large and spatiouse. Bushes and long... grass?... dotted places in the camp. There were ledges, and more caves. Cats of mostly gray and white, were crowded around a huge, huge, boulder. "That's the Big Boulder," Cloud whispered in Dancer's ear. "It's where our leader, High Tree, announces to the Tribe-- it's what we call our group of cats--, the Tribe of Endless Skies." Cloud's blue eyes brightened. "We are the best Tribe out of five!" "There are four other Tribes? What are they called?" Dancer asked curiously, sitting down. Cloud sat down in front of her sister. "There's the Tribe of Darkening Clouds, Tribe of Swimming Fish, Tribe of Swaying Leaves, and Tribe of Cracking Branches. They were all named after the founders." "That's cool!" Dancer exclamied and jumped up. "Aren't you going to show me around the camp, Cloud?" "Yeah, yeah, hold your tail! High Tree just called a meeting." Cloud calmly got up and headed to the Big Boulder. Dancer quickly followed her sister. A small, handsome, well-built, light gray tom was on top of the boulder. "That's High Tree." Cloud whispered when the two sister sat down with other cats. "He's not very high, is he?" Dancer joked, and Cloud stated giggling. "No. He's small." Cloud agreed and looked back up at High Tree. "Cats of the Tribe. We are gathered here today for one of my favorite moments in Tribe life. The transformation from a softclaw to a sharpclaw," He announced and looked down into the sea of cats. Dancer strained her neck to see over the larger cats, but failed. "Don't worry, Dancer. When a softclaw turns into a a sharpclaw, everyone lets the youngest members of the Tribe see." Cloud reassured. "Cave," High Tree began, "do you accept the rules of being a sharpclaw, and respect your Tribe, vowing to protect it for as long as you live?" "Until my last breath, High Tree." a cat, a young one, from the group of cats answered back. "Then, by the powers the Sky Dancers gave me, I give you your new name. Cave, from this moment on, you will be known as Long Cave. May the Sky Dancers light your path, and put your paws on the right path." High Tree jumped down from the Big Boulder and every cat made a clear path to a young cat Dancer guessed was Long Cave. Dancer stood on her two back legs, and balanced carefully. Long Cave was in the middle of the huddled cats with High Tree. The small leader lifted a front paw and rested it on Long Cave's shoulder. He lowered his head and mouthed out words. "What's he doing?" Dancer whispered to Cloud. "He's praying to the Sky Dancers, our ancestors." Cloud whispered back. "Is this when we get the second part of our names?" Dancer asked curiously. Cloud nodded, but said nothing. Dancer looked back at Long Cave. High Tree was gone, and the cats were beggining to depart from the group until only Dancer and Cloud were left. "Come on, I have a lot more to show you!" Cloud bolted off towards the ledge. Dancer raced after her. The two climbed up and finally reached another cave. Cloud motioned for Dancer to follow her inside, so she did. Inside was kind of dim, and there were only two cats inside. "Hello, Cloud, and..." one cat nodded her head to Cloud, but looked curiously at Dancer. "Well, Dancer has finally decided to open her eyes! And my, how they are gorgeous!" The she-cat, a fluffy white cat, hopped out of her nest, a dip in the ground lined with downy feathers, moss, and dried grass. She sniffed Dancer curiously. "She's golden! That's rare here in the Tribe of Endless Skies!" She exclaimed. "Yeah, well enough of this over some fur color!" mumbled another cat, a black tom. "Oh stop it, Night, you're just jelouse that she's got a beautiful coat color while you... you have a very commen color here in the mountains." The white she-cat snapped at Night. She turned back to Dancer. "I'm Ice, by the way. And that over there is, sadly, my brother, Night." Chapter 2 ''Blade raced through the clearing. His'' brother, Cascade, was chasing him. Blade tried to run faster from his brother. Blood pumped in his ears, and his oads were beggining to hurt. He was wishing he didn't put that lizard in Cascade's nest. "You idiot wolf-dung!" Cascade called from behind Blade, but far away. "I'm sorry, Cascade! I'm sorry!" Blade shrieked as he tripped over his paws and rolled on the grassy ground. His camp was covered in lushes greens and branches and logs. His Tribe, the Tribe of Swimming Fish, lived very close to the river and the waterfall. Cascade reached Blade and pinned the runt to the ground. Cascade was a heavily built, black tom kit, Father's favorite. He was first-born, after all. Blade was different, though. He was the last born in a litter of three. The two had another brother, Feather, that admired Cascade more than anything. The two always bullied Blade, that's why he always went to sleep with swollen eyes and cut flanks. That's why he always visited the Healer's den. That's why his father hated him. Cascade bit down on Blade's already-nooked ear. He felt the tear and the warm blood trickling down on his brown tabby fur. "Ouch! Cascade, I'm sorry! I'm really, really sorry! Please stop it!" Blade flailed his paws at his brother, but it was useless. "You useless dung-fur," Cascade bit down harder and scratched Blade's exposed belly with his back claws. More blood pooled around the two kits, and the air reeked with it. "Alright, what's going on?" A voice asked calmly. It was Father. Cascade gasped and jumped off the scared Blade. "Black Mask, I was..." He stammered. "You were doing the correct thing, Cascade. And please, call me Father. Only your brother calls me by my name." Black Mask looked at Blade. His amber eyes were filled with strong hate and disgust. "I don't want him calling me Father. He's dead to me." Blade felt his heart being peirced with a pike's tooth. He said that, right in front of him! "Now come on, Cascade, get Feather and we'll head out to the bank." Black Mask growled and walked calmly to the entrance of camp. Black Mask was a gray tom with a darker mask on his face. His eyes were amber, and he had a stripped tail. He was a great fighter, and was leader of the whole Tribe. Blade had once admired his father, but now, he despises him. They are like a dog and cat: enemies for life. Blade quickly, weakly, picked himself up and limped towards the long patch of grass in the camp. It was where he normaly hid after a beating. "Why," Blade's green eyes swelled up, and tears poured out, meeting with the drying blood on his face. "Blade?" a voice came from behind him. Blade whirled around and relaxed. It was his mother, Gray Cinder. She was the sharptooth of the Tribe, and a respected one at that. "Blade, my darling." Blade whimpered as he pushed his bruised face into his mother's cinder-like colored fur. It was fluffy and soft. It felt like downy feathers. She smelled milky and warm, like the nursery. She was what Blade called home, really. "Mother, Black Mask..." "Shh. Darling, don't speak. Come on, let's go to the Healer." Gray Cinder beckoned Blade slowly, and the two made a slow trip to the other side of camp, where the Healer's cave was. I hate the Healer! Blade growled in his head. It wasn't really true. The Tribe Healer, Hot Ashes, was a kind, gentle she-cat that recently had kits with the Tribe of Endless Skie's Healer, Jagged Rock. They had two kits, Jumper and Coral. "Hello, Blade, Gray Cinder." Hot Ashes bowed to Gray Cinder. "What might I help you--" She broke off when she noticed Blade's nooked ear and bloody belly. "Oh, Sky Dancers!" Hot Ashes disappeared behind a curtain of lichen. A chorus of mewling came from behind the curtain, and was quickly shushed by Hot Ashes. The gray flecked Healer returned with cobwebs, chervil, and some dock leaves. "Now hold still, Blade, this might sting a bit." Hot Ashes chewed the dock leaves carefully. Chapter 3 ''Dancer had fun the rest of'' the afternoos. Ice was very fun to talk to, and Night, well, he was annoying at first, but he was a real soft-heart when you get to know him. Cloud told Dancer that Ive had caught a huge rabbit once. "Rabbits are rare," Ice had said. "Like my pelt!" Dancer squeaked and jumped up. Ice had chuckled and Night had given a snort of amuesment. The kits hadn't moved from the softclaws' cave for a long time until a sharpclaw came in. "Hey, Ice, Night. I was sent by Light Frost to escort Cloud and Dancer back to the nursery." A she-cat, a pale gray, almost white, had come in a den. Her very pale amber eyes rested on Dancer. They were nice and gentle, and her voice was smooth. She smelled of rocks and... meat? "Go along, you two." Night mewed, pushing Dancer to the entrance of the cave. "Come along," The sharpclaw flicked her tail and the kits followed her down the ledge. "So," the she-cat began,"how are you liking the camp, Dancer?" "It's amazing! It's so big and spatiouse, but the rocks and ledges seem like a great threat. I mean, what if there's a soft spot and an avalanche of rocks forms?" Dancer inquired. "Ah, a bright young mind, you have. Well, we only use a couple of paths. When we are about to use a new different path, our leader always tests it, risking his or her lives." The she-cat answered. "Lives? You mean, leaders have lives, not life?" Dancer gasped. "Yes. The Skye Dancers grant each new leader with four new lives. In all, they have five, representing each tribe that lives." The cats were nearing the nursery cave, but the sharpclaw stopped. "Oh, excuse me, I have not yet introduced myself to you two. My name is Flowing Stream." Flowing Stream began to walk again, until the three reached the cave. Chapter 4 ''Blade shifted in his nest of'' moss. He lifted his head, his green eyes were wide awake. His cuts and bruises were stinging, but Blade was used to it all. The five moon old kit stood up, and walked, slowly, to the entrance of the fern den. He looked over his shoulder before he stepped out of the den. His mother was sleeping peacefully, twitching slightly, as if in a dream. Cascade was curled up next to next to Feather. The second-born's russet-colored chest rising and falling softly. Cascade's big paws twitched and he suddenly flexed his claws. Blade gave a small gasp and quickly bolted out of the den. The clearing was lit by moonlight, giving it a mysteriouse and dark appearence. Blade hesitantly walked past his father's den, a cave under a pile of rocks. The scarred kit stopped and listened carefully to the sounds of his camp. Snoring, a whimper or two, and even slight giggles. Blade shook his head as he continued to walk. He pushed through the fern tunnel, lined with bracken for protection. The sounds of the grassy landscape were rhythamatic. The chirping of crickets and other bugs. The swift shapes fluttering soundlessly near Blade. Blade kept walking, and walking, and walking, until finally, he reached the river. He stepped onto the sandy bank and sat down. The river water was clear and Blade caught sight of a pike chasing something. Blade liked to come here, sometimes, when no one was watching. The steady lapping of the shore on the rocks, and the sound of flowing water was peaceful. It was a wonder, really, how this very river caused great devistation many seasons ago, before even Blade's parents' parents were born. The river had swollen heavily, until it couldn't hold anymore. The whole moor-like territory was covered in water. The camp was destroyed, cats of all ages lost to the flood. Plants and animals died, until finally, only ten Tribe cats remained from the Tribe of Swimming Fish. They had retreated to high land, in the nearby mountains, where the Tribe of Endless Skies ruled. The leader then, Leaf Dapple, had been generous enough to allow the ten cats to live there for a long time. Blade began to wonder why his father wasn't like Leaf Dapple, kind and generous? It didn't really matter that they were two different cats, did it? No, any cat can take on another cat's characteristics. Take Feather and Cascade, for example. They began to develop their father's hatred for Blade. The river, Blade thought, was beggining to look like his father's heart. Turning black every second, every heartbeat until it finally became a flowing black river. Chapter 5 ''Dancer giggled as she leaped into''' the air to catch the butterfly. She wasn't in her cave, or in her camp. Not even in her territory. No, this looked a lot like the Tribe of Swimming Fish's territory: a moor-like place. There was lushes greenery, a few bushes here and there, and a large pool of water in the middle of the territory. The pool was beautiful, clear, glistening water, and small fish that nibbled your paws. The sky was clear and blue. Everything was ''beautiful. Dancer missed the butterfly by a claw-length, and dropped back down. Dancer gave an annoyed growl, and walked over to the pool. The beautiful golden kit lowered her head to get a drink. When Dancer's tongue met with the water, it tasted sticky and salty. The kit lifted her head and gasped. The clear water was no more, instead, the water was crimson red, gurgling over the edges, and quickly spreading around the moor. Dancer gave a shriek of panic, and bolted the oppostie direction of the pool, but it was useless. The blood quickly caught up with Dancer, licking her heels and speckling her tail-tip. "Help meee!" She shrieked and gathered all her energy to run faster. The blood roared in her ears as she tried to out-run the blood. She ran until a gray point was on the horizon. She reached it, realizing it was a very steep mountain. Dancer turned her head to the right. The mountain stretched out as far as the eye can see. To the left was the same. No escape. Dancer turned and saw that the blood was not too far away. Dancer tried in vain to climb the mountain, but it was no use. She turned once more and felt the blood touch her paws. It began to rise, flooding the moor completely. "Help!" Dancer cried one more time before the lake of blood forced her to swim. Her small paws didn't know how to swim, and the water was rising higher every second. The Dark and Light will collide and fill a lake of blood. That was the last thing Dancer heard before sticky blood carried her head underwater. Under the lake of blood. Chapter 6 Category:Fanfiction Category:Silversong's Fanfiction